Historical Figure
John F. Kennedy
1917–1963
President of the United States from 1961 to 1963
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"Inaugural Address" — January 20, 1961
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Key Dates
Death
1963 November 22, 1963 →Biography
John Fitzgerald Kennedy, also known as JFK, was the 35th president of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963. He was the youngest person elected president at 43 years, as well as the first Catholic president. Kennedy served at the height of the Cold War, and the majority of his foreign policy concerned relations with the Soviet Union and Cuba. A member of the Democratic Party, Kennedy represented Massachusetts in both houses of the United States Congress before his presidency.
Timeline
World War II: the Motor Torpedo Boat PT-109 is rammed by the Japanese destroyer Amagiri and sinks. Lt. John F. Kennedy, future U.S. President, saves all but two of his crew.
August 2 →U.S. Senator and future President John Fitzgerald Kennedy marries Jacqueline Lee Bouvier at St. Mary's Church in Newport, Rhode Island.
September 12 →In Chicago, the first televised debate takes place between presidential candidates Richard M. Nixon and John F. Kennedy.
September 26 →Richard Paul Pavlick is arrested for attempting to blow up and assassinate the U.S. President-Elect, John F. Kennedy only four days earlier.
December 15 →While campaigning for President of the United States, John F. Kennedy announces his idea of the Peace Corps.
November 1 →John F. Kennedy avers he does not speak for the Roman Catholic Church, and neither does the Church speak for him.
September 12 →The musical Camelot debuts at the Majestic Theatre on Broadway. It will become associated with the Kennedy administration.
December 3 →John F. Kennedy is elected as the 35th President of the United States, defeating incumbent Vice President Richard Nixon, who would later be elected president in 1968 and 1972.
November 8 →John Fitzgerald Kennedy is elected the 35th President of the United States defeating Richard M. Nixon.
November 8 →John F. Kennedy defeats Richard Nixon in one of the closest presidential elections of the twentieth century to become the 35th president of the United States.
November 8 →Richard Pavlick is arrested for plotting to assassinate U.S. President-Elect John F. Kennedy.
December 15 →More from the Postwar
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